December 24, 2014 - Christmas Eve

A Noel Proclamation - Joseph M. Martin

O Magnum Mysterium - Tomas Luis Victoria

Hymns: #83 Adeste Fidelis, #96 Gloria, #87 Mendelssohn

              #107 in Dulci Jubilo, #111 Stille Nacht, 

The music for the Christmas Eve service mixes old and new which seems applicable given the nature of the season. Christmas for many people is about tradition and familiarity but it is also often a time of new beginnings. One week after this service we will find ourselves sitting around waiting to welcome in a new year. The new year which will bring its own challenges and adventures but will still bear resemblance to the years that have gone before. It will share the same seasons, holidays, births, deaths joys and tears but will have its own character.

For me that about sums up the gradual anthem. It is a collection of familiar carols arranged by Joseph M. Martin (b. 1959) taken from his 2009 cantata “The Mystery and Majesty.” The cantata is a lovely blend of familiar and some less familiar Christmas carols and original compositions that tell the story of the nativity through the lens of the mystery that was the birth of Christ. This large carol fantasy concludes the cantata. It opens with Angels From the Realms of Glory set in unison to an accompaniment that sounds like a Baroque chorale prelude. This segues into the 19^th century hymn Thou Didst Leave Thy Throne, a hymn that goes through the life of Christ but is most commonly (like Handel’s Messiah) sung during Advent and Christmas.  This flows into Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s text of the same year, I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day.  This poem was written in response to the death of Longfellow’s wife in a fire and the severe injury of his son Charles in battle. After a refrain of Adeste Fidelis we move to the final hymn, The First Noel. This builds to a in the last verse of the hymn “Then let us all with one accord.” The accompaniment explodes as though every church bell in town were pealing together for the coda proclaiming that “Christ the Lord is born.”

The communion is a setting of an ancient Latin text that has captivated composers for centuries.  O Magnum Mysterium is a chant for Matins at Christmas. This setting by Tomas Luis Victoria (c.1548-1611) is a standard of the choral cannon that occupies a prominent place in the repertoire of most school, college, and church choirs. The opening contrapuntal section captures the mystery of that the text describes. The counterpoint stops as the text celebrating the virgin is set in quiet homophonic chords. This moves ahead to an exuberant triple meter “alleluia” that then breaks into cascading “alleluias” back in duple meter with an ebb and flow of consonance and dissonance against the soprano’s sustained tonic.

December 21, 2014 - Advent 4

Magnificat - Heinrich Scheidemann

Magnificat - John Rutter

Ave Maria - Robert Parsons

Magnificat - Scott M. Hyslop

Hymns: #56 Veni, Veni Emmanuel, 

              #265 Gabriel's Message, #66 Stuttgart

The music this week is all based on Mary. With the exception of the communion anthem they pieces are settings of Canticle 15 which is taken from Luke 1:46-55. Throughout history composers have taken inspiration from the “Magnificat.” It is one of the most frequently set liturgical texts and continues to inspire today. This hymn is one of the eight most ancient hymns and perhaps one of the oldest Marian hymns. It typically finds a place in evening liturgies.

The prelude is a setting of the Magnificat by Heinrich Scheidemann (1595-1663) an important predecessor of Dietrich Buxtehude and a student of Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck. Scheidemann developed a composition style that brought the variation techniques of Sweelinck to the massive North German organs that would come to shape the music of Buxtehude and later Bach. He served as organist of the Catharinenkirche in Hamburg until his death during a plague outbreak. The piece is composed to alternate with sung verses, a practice more commonly used in the French Romantic period.

The postlude is also a set of variations on the Magnificat by Scott M. Hyslop (b. 1961). Hyslop has studied with Marilyn Mason and Alice Parker. In 2007 Dr. Hyslop wrote a biography on the American composer Paul Manz. He continues an active career as a church musician and composer.  This piece shows off many of the interesting small ensemble sounds available on the organ as well as various techniques that organists have at their disposal to shake up service playing. The piece alternates sung verses with instrumental verses. The organ verses follow traditional forms including chorale, canon, pastorale, moto perpetua, scherzo, and toccata.

John Rutter (b. 1945) is perhaps one of the biggest names in church music now. He was educated at Clare College and taught there from 1975-1979. He left this post to devote more time to composition. He formed the Cambridge Singers, a professional choir which he still conducts. Many critics have mixed feelings regarding Rutter’s compositions finding it sentimental and superficial. His large works and carols have become standard repertoire. Many of his compositions make up the “greatest hits” of modern choral music. The Magnificat was written in 1990 and received its first performance at Carnegie Hall on May 26, 1990 under the direction of the composer. The piece is heavily influenced by the celebrations of Marian feasts in Hispanic culture. In addition to the traditional text of the canticle Rutter added the English poem Of a Rose and the prayer Sancta Maria. This piece has a great deal of rhythmic interest in it with many hemiolas and meter changes. The melody is very Rutter. It’s very catchy but also very repetitive. The piece certainly captures the joy and pent up energy of the coming celebration of Christmas.

The communion anthem is Robert Parson’s (1535-1570-2?) Ave Maria. Little is written or known about this 16^th century master and much of the music that has survived is incomplete. This may be because after his untimely death his music stopped being performed. Parsons “fell” into the swollen Trent River. The suspicions surrounding this was so upsetting to his colleagues that they stopped performing his compositions. He was succeeded by William Byrd. 

December 14, 2014 - Advent 3

Freu dich sehr o meine Seele - Georg Bohm

There Shall Come Forth - Kevin Wood

Thou Shalt Know Him - Mark Sirett

Hymns: #724 Besancon Carol, #72 Richmond, 

              #723 Samanthra

This week the music is filled with subtle beauty and gentle musicality. The two a cappella anthems are both settings by American composers and the prelude and postlude are variations on Freu dich sehr o meine Seele which we know more commonly as the hymn tune Psalm 42 which has been our song of praise through Advent. These pieces seem small and simple initially but upon further examination the pieces are all very intricate with lots of beautiful detail and intricate lines.

There Shall Come Forth is an anthem for a cappella choir that was commissioned for the West Side Madrigalists. The piece was written by Kevin Wood and is a setting of Isaiah 11. The piece opens with the men echoing the women in descending sixths moving toward a stark cadence in open fifths and fourths. The tenor takes the lead as while the ladies sail above. The next section is a series of fifths that move in contrary motion. This breaks into a short fugue which goes back to the opening of the piece.  The beauty of it comes from the subtlety of the dynamics and the rise and fall of the line. The setting captures the mystery of the season as well as the starkness of life at that time.

The communion anthem is Thou Shalt Know Him by Mark Sirett (b. 1952). Sirett is the founding Artistic Director of Cantabile Choirs of Kingston, Ontario. He was educated at the University of Iowa and taught at the Universities of Alberta, Western Ontario, and Queen’s University. In addition to this he has received two international conducting awards. This piece opens with only the sopranos and then repeats with the choir in four parts. This setting of a 15^th century text of Anonymous composition illustrates both extremes of the story, the ridiculousness and the reality of the Christmas story are exemplified not just in the text but in the setting of this piece.

The pre/postlude are taken from Georg Böhm’s setting of Freu dich sehr o meine Seele which is more commonly known as Psalm 42 and often set to “Comfort, Comfort Ye my People.” This set of twelve variations by one of J.S. Bach’s teacher’s showcases the various contrapuntal techniques that Böhm learned during his time as a student. The Italian influence can clearly be seen in the emphasis on manual technique as well as the florid lines. This influence was transferred to many of the compositions for J.S. Bach keyboard. It was the influence of Böhm’s partitas that can most clearly be seen by historians.

These pieces are part of what makes Advent so beautiful. The music is so mysterious and meaningful when viewed through the lens of today’s Christmas offerings because we can see the expectancy and the anticipation that previous generations knew how to capitalize on. We have the opportunity to remember this as well if we will allow ourselves. 

December 7, 2014 - Advent 2

Es ist ein Ros entsprungen - Johannes Brahms

Requiem: "All Flesh is Grass" - Johannes Brahms

Comfort Ye - Katherine K. Davis

Symphonie VI: "Intermezzo" - Charles Marie Widor

Hymns: #65 Berden vag for Herran, #76 Winchester New,

              #59 Merton

The music this week sits on the line between comfort and devastation. The anthem All Flesh is Grass and the postlude are pretty apocalyptic in nature with bright moments of serenity. The prelude and communion anthem focus on the comforting aspects of the Isaiah passage this week.

The gradual anthem is taken from the German Requiem by Johannes Brahms (1833-1897). The German Requiem was premiered at Bremen Cathedral on Good Friday 1868 and was an enormous success which marked a turning point in Brahms’s career. Brahms added the fifth movement in memory of his mother and the piece received its first complete performance in 1869. As with his first symphony, Brahms was very deliberate about the composition of the Requiem. The piece makes use of thematic material that he composed as early as 1854. The second movement begins with an instrumental funeral march the lower three voices of the choir enter in unison. The march returns and builds to a forte unison entrance of the full choir that dies away to a new section with text from the book of James in a gentle homophonic (initially) section. The funeral march resumes with an exact repeat of the first two sections of the movement. Brahms moves to the parallel major key of Bb with a verse from 1 Peter that leads to a joyous statement started in the basses then joined by the full choir. This leads to a back and forth section between the tears and sighing that will flee and the joy of the redeemed.  The piece ends with the individual sections stating “joy everlasting.” They then join and build to one final climax before the final decrescendo to the end.

The prelude is also by Brahms. His Es ist ein Ros entsprungen from the Op. 122 set of Eleven Chorale Preludes.  These intimate pieces along with a prelude and fugue in Ab minor are Brahms’s only works for organ.  The opus 122 chorales were the last pieces written by Brahms and are often viewed as a commentary on his impending death.  This piece is a setting of the familiar chorale Lo, How a Rose E’er Blooming.  The melody is mildly ornamented and the piece, like most in the set, is played on a quiet registration.

The postlude is the Intermezzo from Symphonie VI in g minor by Charles Marie Widor (1844-1937). Charles-Marie Widor was born in Lyons to a family of organ builders. He began his career as an organist at age 11 and soon sparked the interest of Cavaillé-Coll, the famous organ builder. Cavaillé-Coll made arrangements for Widor to study at the Brussels Conservatory with the renowned organist Nicolas-Jacques Lemmens. Upon completion of his studies he moved to Paris where he was appointed organist of the five manual, 100 stop organ at St. Sulpice in 1870 where he remained for 64 years. Influenced by the organs of Cavaillé-Coll, Widor created a new medium that he called the “organ symphony,” a multi-movement work for organ that borrows its forms from the traditional orchestral symphony which allowed Widor to explore the orchestral capabilities of the Caviellé-Coll organs. Symphonie VI in g minor was composed in 1878 for the inauguration of the organ at the Trocadéro and was premiered there on August 24 by the composer. The overall structure of the symphony alternates slow and fast movements as well as alternating tonal centers. The first and third movements are in g minor while the fifth is in G major. The Intermezzo highlights the reed choruses and cornets of the organ. This movement is in ternary form with fiery arpeggios shared between hands flanking either side of a lyrical trio section. This movement was criticized after the first performance of the symphony for being “too pianistic.”

Comfort Ye is a setting of the familiar passage from Isaiah that we often associate with the opening tenor recitative from Handel’s Messiah.  This setting was written by Katherine K. Davis (1892-1980). Davis was born in Missouri and attended Wellesley College and the New England Conservatory. She also studied with the renowned French composer and teacher Nadia Boulanger.  She taught music at the Concord Academy and the Shady Hill School for Girls. During her lifetime she wrote more than 600 compositions but is probably best remembered for Carol of the Drum more commonly called The Little Drummer Boy. She also wrote the hymn Let All Things Now Living which is sung to the hymn tune “Ash Grove.” The piece opens with a lovely soprano solo that is then taken up by the full soprano section and echoed by the tenors with the altos and basses providing accompaniment. The piece picks up and breaks into a joyful fugato (little fugal section) and at the end returns to the soprano’s solo line and then the answering chorus. This adds a nice contrast to the more gnarly postlude and dramatic gradual anthem.

November 30, 2014 - Advent 1

Passacaglia - Douglas E. Wagner

Advent Passacaglia - Mark Schweizer

Passacaglia in c minor BWV 582 - J.S. Bach

Hymns: #640 Aberstwyth, #721 Ton-Y-Botel, 

              #73 St. Stephen

This week’s music with the exception of the communion anthem is held together by form. 

The passacaglia is a form that originated in the 17^th century. These pieces are typically in triple meter (i.e. 3/4) and have a somber basso ostinato (a repeated bass line). The pieces are often written as a set of variations of ever increasing intricacy and complexity. The repeated idea does not always need to be a bass line but can present itself in any voice part.

The prelude is taken from Douglas E Wagner’s (b. 1952) set of Eight Psalm Impressions. This “Passacaglia”  is inspired by Psalm 52 “The goodness of God endureth continually.” The passacaglia is an ideal form for this verse. Just like God’s goodness, ostinato “endureth continually” through the set of eight variations and the coda. One noticeably different quality of this passacaglia is that the theme is in a major key rather than the more common minor key. Wagner began his career as a high school music teacher that composed on the side but with more than 2,500 publications to his credit he has become a full time composer. He currently resides in Indianapolis with his wife.

The gradual anthem by Mark Schweizer (b. 1956) is another excellent example of a passacaglia with a few interesting features. Schweizer is a native of Florida and holds degrees from Stetson University and the University of Arizona. He has held many university positions and is the owner and editor of St. James’s Press. In addition to his musical accomplishments Schweizer is the author of the St. Germaine mystery series including titles like The Alto Wore Tweed and The Tenor Wore Tap Shoes. The anthem is a set of nine variations in which the ostinato takes as a repeated harmonic structure rather than a bass line. The piece opens with the women singing a chain of suspensions a cappella in three parts. The organ joins the ladies of the choir for the second variation. The next variation is for a solo baritone with a new theme followed by the entrance of all the men. The women return with the same notes as the opening but with text. Variation six varies the men’s initial themes which are combined with the previous variation to make up variation seven.  The last two are further variations on numbers five and seven with an increased drive to the end before the sudden halt and concluding chords.

The postlude is Bach’s magnificent Passacaglia and Fugue in c minor BWV 582. I will only be playing the passacaglia because of time. Pieces like this and the ciaconas of Buxtehude make use of common improvisatory techniques and figures. Bach’s piece is a set of 21 variations (20 variations and the fugue which is the final variation) of varied texture, rhythm, and placement of the theme. The piece is in c minor, a key associated with longing which seems appropriate as we begin Advent. The work is rife with pent up tension that is released but not quite as the final chord normally goes into the fugue. It is easy to see why this is the standard for most pieces written in this form and why so many arrangements for orchestra and other ensembles exist. 

November 23, 2014 - Christ the King Sunday

Trumet Tune in C Major - David N. Johnson

Lauda Sion - Felix Mendelssohn

In Nomine Jesu - Jacob Handl

Hymns: #494 Diademata, #382 General Seminary, 

              Soon and Very Soon

This week’s choral music is heavily influenced by the choral music of early Italian masters but neither piece was written by them. The Lauda Sion of Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847) owes a great deal to the settings of Palestrina and Gibbons despite the lack of 16^th century counterpoint in this movement the influence of Gabrieli’s homophonic antiphonal style is evident and the presence of the chant melody later in the work is also a nod to the Venetian masters. In Nomine Jesu by Jacob Handl (1550-1591) combines the Franco-Flemish tradtion with that of the Venetian school. The prelude was written by American organist and teacher, David N Johnson (1922-1987.)

Mendelssohn is most often remembered for his symphonies, his Songs Without Words for the piano and for his choral music. His two large scale oratorios, Elijah, and St. Paul along with dozens of other psalm settings and cantatas. Lauda Sion Op. 73 was written in 1846 while Mendelssohn was hard at work on his oratorio Elijah. It was written for the 600^th anniversary of Corpus Christi and has a text by Thomas Aquinas. This text is one of only four sequences that survived The Council of Trent (another being the Dies Irae.) This lesser known work examines the mysteries of the Eucharist and utilizes the familiar chant melody associated with this text later on in the piece. The joyful homophonic opening in C major calls to mind the writings of Gabrieli for organ, brass, and choir with their big, full sounds.

Jacob Handl [Gallus] was born in 1550 in what is now Ribnica, Slovenia. He was educated at the Cistercian Monastery and went on to live at the Benedictine Melk Abbey. His career included Viennese Court composer, Kapellmeister to the Bishop of Moravia, and organist in Prague.  He composed more than 500 pieces during his short life of only 41 years and was known for his combination of Franco-Flemish style and the music of the Venetian school.

The prelude was written by David N. Johnson (1922-1987) and is one of his many Trumpet Tunes, this one in C major. As with most pieces in this style the piece goes back and forth between solo trumpet with accompaniment in the left hand and pedal to loud bold statements on the full chorus of the organ. David N. Johnson has ties to the Syracuse area. In 1951 he received his Master’s degree and in 1956 his PhD from Syracuse University. From 1960-1967 he was a lecturer at the university and in 1967 he succeeded Arthur Poister as professor of organ. In 1969 he moved to Arizona to teach at Arizona State at Tempe.

November 16, 2014 - Proper 28

Cantata 140 "Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme" - JS Bach

Hymns: #536 Torah Song, #490 Houston, 

              #290 St. George's, Windsor

This week the choir and soloists will present movements 1, 3, 4, and 7 of BWV 140 “Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme.” This cantata is based on the parable from Matthew 25, the parable of the ten virgins. In this parable Christ is warning that because no man knows the day or the other of the Lord’s return that we must be ready at any moment for Christ to return to claim his church. J.S. Bach sets this story in a bit more positive light using Philipp Nicolai’s (1556-1608)chorale as the musical basis of the piece he constructed a cantata in seven movements. The overall structure of the piece is interesting in that it is symmetrical:

             

               1.)    Chorale fantasy

               2.)    Recitative

               3.)    Duet

               4.)    Chorale

               5.)    Recitative

               6.)    Duet

               7.)    Closing Chorale

The two duets are for soprano and bass. Traditionally bass solos in the writing of Bach are associated with the voice of Jesus and this cantata is no different. The soprano sings the role of the “soul of the believer.” In the first duet the soprano is pleading and longing for Jesus but in the second duet the soprano sings with joy for the arrival of Christ and the union of the two.

In movement one Bach uses the French overture style of angular dotted rhythms to propel the piece forward adding even more rhythmic interest as the voices prepare to enter. The sopranos sing the chorale tune in long notes above the dialogue of the lower three voices. Calvin R. Stapert points out in his book My Only Comfort that Bach increases the excitement and impatience of the lower voices in the two A sections by having them enter closer and closer to the soprano’s entrance on the tune.  On the first phrase the sopranos sing two measures alone in the second only one and in the third phrase all voices enter together. In the B section the lower three parts enter before the chorale tune. This bursts into a melismatic cry of “Alleluia.” The lower three parts are then so excited that they continue to emphatically repeat “make you ready” before finally finishing the sentence “for the wedding.”  The piece ends as it began with the dotted rhythms of the French overture style erupting into running sixteenth notes in the violin and reaching an exciting climax.

As previously stated, the third movement is a duet for soprano (soul of the believer) and bass (Jesus). This movement follows a tenor recitative where the tenor tells the hearer that the Bridegroom is coming. The duet is a constant back and forth with Jesus reassuring the soul that he is coming and that the soul will join him which she does only once on the text “the heavenly meal.”

The tenor solo (which can be sung by all of the tenors in the choir) is perhaps one of the best known of Bach’s chorale settings. He thought highly enough of it to transcribe it for solo organ as one of the six Schubler chorales. The steady rhythmic nature of the piece suggests the processional to the wedding feast and the dance-like obbligato adds a sense of joy that was missing from the previous movement.

The final movement is Bach’s stunning four part setting of the chorale that is filled with images of the glory of heaven. A satisfying end to the cantata that starts as a warning and ends in eternal celebration; a reminder of the promise of heaven and the reward of the watchful. 

November 9 2014 - Proper 27

Prelude on "Dundee" - Gordon Young

Psalm 100 - John Weaver

Pie Jesu - Charles Gounod

Marche Solennelle - Charles Gounod

Hymns: #709 Dundee, #324 Picardy, #57 Helmsley

The music this week is from three organists that also composed, the Americans John Weaver and Gordon Young, and French composer Charles Gounod. These pieces show some of the rich history and tradition of church musicians that also composed music for the groups that they served and added to the literature for their instruments.

John Weaver (b. 1937) is an American organist, choir director, teacher, and recitalist that has enjoyed an extensive career throughout the world. He was educated at the Curtis Institute where he later became a professor.  He has also served at Julliard, Westminster Choir College and the Manhattan School of Music. In addition to his academic positions he served as organist at Madison Avenue Presbyterian Church in NYC from 1970-2005. Although Weaver has few compositions to his credit the pieces all make use of the organ. This setting of Psalm 100 was dedicated to Dr. Ross H. Stover and the choir of the now closed Messiah Lutheran Church in Philadelphia. This psalm seems to be giving instructions to the listener. We are told to “make a joyful noise” the psalmist then goes on to remind us why we should praise God. Psalms like this are nice reminders for those of us that fall into the habit of church. It is easy to just do and not to think about why we do the things we do. We sing because we are his people, he hath made us. We sing because he is good and his mercy is everlasting. These reminders when viewed freshly can serve to rejuvenate even the most disenfranchised worshipper.

Gordon Young (1919-1998)was born in Kansas and like Weaver was educated at the Curtis Institute. Young has published more than 800 pieces and many of his choral and organ works have become standard repertoire. His Prelude on Dundee shows his straight-forward but tastefully artistic compositional style. The piece alternates between a clarinet solo on the hymn tune and the lush string celeste of the swell division.

Charles Gounod (1818-1893) was educated like most French musicians at the Paris Conservatoire. He served at the Church of the Foreign Missions. Gounod wrote two symphonies, operas, cantatas, works for choir and organ. The Marche Solennelle is dedicated to the pedal piano virtuoso Lucie Palicot and the piece can be played on organ or pedal piano. The piece is a fanfare like march with pedal flourishes that you could easily hear on the pedal piano as well as the organ. Pie Jesu is a part of the set Chants Sacres for solo soprano or tenor. This piece is beautiful for its simplicity. Beautiful rising and falling lines that are shaped by gentle subtle by the tenor and the organ are not showy but beautiful for their simple illustration of a simple text. Like the more well known Faure, this piece has a simple lyrical melody that is not overtly virtuosic but instead allows the text to be easily conveyed.

November 2, 2014 - All Saint's

Gloria FP177 - Francis Poulenc

Requiem Op.9 - Maurice Durufle

This week for the feast of All Saint’s the choir of St. David’s will present the Gloria by Francis Poulenc (1899-1963) and the Requiem by Maurice Durufle (1902-1986) both with organ accompaniment. These monumental pieces of 20th century French choral literature showcase the beauty of Gregorian chant and lush jazz influenced harmonies.

The Gloria of Francis Poulenc was commissioned by the Koussevitsky Foundation in honor of Sergei and Natalia Koussevitsky. It was premiered on January 21, 1961 by by the Boston Symphony Orchestra and the Chorus Pro Musica under conductor Charles Münch with Adele Addison as soloist. The piece was written with Leontyne Price in mind but when she was unavailable Addison was contracted for the performance.

The piece in six movements is a setting of the Gloria from the Latin mass. The music is heavily influenced by the extended harmonies of jazz that are prevalent in all of Poulenc’s compositions. The piece opens with fanfare but a fanfare that already shows us the rather “crunchy” harmonies in store. Laudamus Te, the second movement has criticized for its totally irreverent word stress. It is a joyous romp that gives way to a plaintive alto solo before return to the jovial material of the opening.

The soprano soloist enters for the first time in movement three, Domine Deus, Rex coelestis in b minor. The choir serves primarily as background here occasionally doubling with the soloist or adding colorful countermelodies. The joy of the opening returns in Domini Fili in a bright G major despite the chorus’s minor entrance and a very catchy recurring theme.

Movement five resembles movement three in that both feature the soprano soloist in a minor key on the text “Domine Deus” (this time followed by “Agnus Dei”). The winding chromatic line is reminiscent of a sweeping film score rather than a setting of a religious text. This piece winds its way around until finally settling on an eerie final chord. The last movement begins with an a cappella fanfare like section that is punctuated by dissonant chords. This movement perfectly combines the spritely characteristics of the fast movements with the lush string sounds of movements 3 and 5 in the B section. The fanfare returns just before the meditative final chord is held under the pianissimo soprano solo.

Durufle’s Op. 9 Requiem was commissioned in 1947 by the French publisher Durand. It is sited as being in memory of the composer’s father but is just as much inspired by the very music that it is based on. When Durufle received the commission he had already begun work on a suite for organ based on the Gregorian chants for the Mass for the Dead but had decided that these pieces are too wedded to the texts that they set to be separated. He then used them as the basis for his Requiem.

Three versions of the work were written and published. The first is the version for full orchestra written in 1947. The second (which will be the one that we present) is for organ only. A third version was written which preserves much of the organ part from the version for solo organ and adds a small orchestra (trumpets, timpani, harp and strings) for color.

The piece is based primarily on traditional Gregorian chants. Like Faure’s Requiem (which it is often [mistakenly] compared to) this piece does not set the Dies Irae but does include a portion of it in the Libera Me. The use of chant in this work is very interesting. It is usually sung at least once in each movement but Durufle is inconsistent about his treatment of it. In some movements like Lux Aeterna it seems clear that the meter is completely defined by the word stress of the chant while in other movements like the Sanctus and portions of Libera Me the word stress is completely disregarded.

The sectional nature of some of the movements shows the way that Durufle dealt with the different aspects of diverse texts. The most disparate movements, Domine Jesu Christe and Libera Me both employ a baritone soloist to deliver a portion of the text as well as a change of character. In some movements such as the Kyrie Durufle adhered to the traditional form (a fugue) but disregarded the tripartite iteration of each plea. It seems that while much of the work is inspired and informed by the traditions of these texts that they only serve as a guideline for the composer’s writing.

October 26,2014 - Proper 25

Romance for horn Op. 36 - Camille Saint-Saens

Set Me as a Seal - Richard Nance

Horn Concerto No. 3 - W.A. Mozart

Hymns: #423 St. Denio, #517 Brother James' Air

              #538 Lucerna Laudonaie 

This week as we observe Morning Prayer the music is less focused on a clear period or composer but more on the medium that it was composed for. Joining us this Sunday is Paula Kinev, a fantastic horn player. The choir’s anthem calls for horn and I thought it would be nice for her to share a few other musical offerings with us.

The choir’s anthem, Set Me as a Seal was composed by Richard Nance for the wedding of fellow choral conductor Richard Sparks and his fiancé Kathryn Wold in 1996. The piece takes its text from the love poetry of the Bible, Song of Solomon. This oft set text opens with a lovely rising and falling line that reminds me of something be set or placed. It’s as though the composer lifts up the line and places on the heart of his or her intended. The B section sets the text “Many waters cannot quench love, neither can floods drown it” in a flowing 9/8 in which the soprano and alto voices act as the water trying to quench love as the tenors valiantly try to finish the statement as they are nearly swallowed by the oppressive 2 against 3 rhythms. The men of the choir then take up the billowing figure followed by the ladies leading to a climax on the statement “cannot quench love” which takes us back to 4/4 and brings in the soaring horn solo. The instrumental interlude leads us to a return of the A section. The choir finishes solidly rising again to forte on the word strong and only tapering slightly as the horn and organ finish the piece. The composer makes no denial in his setting of the text that death also is strong, I think that may be why the piece stays strong to the end. The instrumental ending suggests to me that love merely tapers away into death. The metaphorical language of the Biblical text is usually taken to be interpreted as God’s love for His people Israel rather than the literal love story of two people. This reading offers further insight into the idea of love fading into death. The Bible tells us frequently in the New Testament that we have a place prepared for us where we shall be with God. This is the ultimate union of love in death. Something to think on as we approach the Feast of All Saints. 

October 19, 2014 - Proper 24

Prelude in G - Henry Purcell

Rejoice in the Lord Alway - Henry Purcell

Cantata 52: "Ich halt es mit dem lieben Gott" - J.S. Bach

Fugue in g minor BWV 578 - J.S. Bach

Hymns: #375 Du Lebensbrot, Herr Jesu, #602 Jesu, Jesu,

              #680 St. Anne

The music this week is from two different traditions in the Baroque period, the English world of Henry Purcell and the Lutheran traditions of J.S. Bach.

Henry Purcell (1659-1695) was born the son of a court musician and started his career as a chorister at the Chapel Royal. He studied with John Blow and in 1679 succeeded him as organist of Westminster Abbey. Blow stepped down from the job in favor of his more talented student. Upon Purcell’s death Blow returned to the post and composer Ode on the Death of Purcell. During his lifetime Purcell wrote chamber music, keyboard music, choral anthems, songs and music for the theatre. The anthem Rejoice in the Lord Alway Z49 was written between 1682 and 1685. It is a verse anthem setting of Philippians 4:4-7. The work opens with an orchestral (strings and continuo) prelude that has earned the piece the nickname Bell Anthem. The writing is reminiscent of the pealing of bells. As is the case with verse anthems, solo voices alternate with the full choir, in this case, a trio (alto, tenor, bass) which delivers the majority of the text while the full choir sings “Rejoice in the Lord alway and again I say rejoice.” In the full version there are instrumental interludes before each occurrence of the refrain but they have been cut in this version.

The prelude is also by Purcell. This Prelude in G can work as a piece for harpsichord or organ. Although written before the paired preludes and fugues of the later Baroque period, which is essentially what this is. The piece starts freely on the “diapasons;” a combination of the 8’principal and the 8’stopped diapason which is a flute. The fugue is played on a brighter registration with a combination of light principal stops. This gives a bit more clarity to the lines and allows the counterpoint to shine through.

The communion anthem is taken from Cantata 52 Falsche Welt, dir trau ich nicht “False word, I don’t trust you” by J.S. Bach (1685-1750). This cantata for solo soprano, two horns, three oboes, bassoon, strings and continuo was written in Leipzig and first performed on the November 24, 1726 for the 23 Sunday after Trinity. This was Bach’s first solo cantata to be presented in Leipzig  and was not particularly well received. The piece has seven movements. The opening Sinfonia is an early version of Brandenburg Concerto No. 1 without the violin piccolo solo. The fifth movement, Ich halt es mit dem lieben Gott , is accompanied by the trio of oboes. This is something that Bach did more with bass arias. One commentator wrote that the trio of oboes give is “a sense of solidarity, aligning oneself with the Lord and letting the world operate as it may.” The text for this aria, “I stay beside this dear God, let the world remain on its own. With God beside me, and me beside God, thus I myself can dispel the mockery of deceptive tongues.” paints a picture of a person that has found a sense of purpose and grounding in her faith to keep her from the false words of the world.

The postlude is Bach’s “Little” g minor fugue. The designation little is to differentiate it from the fugue paired with the fantasia that makes up BWV 542. This piece has been arranged for every medium imaginable from saxophone quartet to marching band and even as a piece for full orchestra. Its length coupled with the very clear entrances in the exposition and bouncy episodes makes it an ideal piece for teaching fugue in a theory class. Despite the somewhat boxy nature of the fugue theme, the piece has a great deal of energy and lightness, especially in the episodes with their cascading sixteenth notes. This piece is brilliant; it is musical and exciting without being long and rambling.

October 12, 2014 - Proper 23

Neuf Pieces: "Prelude sur une Antienne" - Jean Langlais

Gloria: "Laudamus Te" - Francis Poulenc

This is the Hour of Banquet and of Song-Richard DeLong

Hark! Ten Thousand Harps and Voices - arr. Diane Bish

Hymns: #7 Ratisbon, #763 Raquel, #569 Russia

The music this week is a little bit all over the place but it all fits together well. The prelude and gradual anthem are from the late French Romantic literature while the postlude and communion anthem are settings of great but lesser known hymns.

The communion anthem is a setting of This is the Hour of Banquet and of Song by Horatius Bonar (1808-1899). Bonar was born in Edinburgh and ordained in 1837. In 1843 he joined the Free Church of Scotland. He gained fame as a religious writer with the publication of the “Kelso Tracts” in addition to this he has authored over 600 hymns. The text is set to a new tune by the American organist and composer Richard DeLong (1951-1994). DeLong attended Ashland College and did his graduate work at Southern Methodist University. DeLong was a successful recitalist and accompanist as well as being a respected composer. He received several prominent commissions during his career. This hymn anthem sets the four verses of Bonar’s Eucharistic hymn simply but elegantly first in unison then all of the men of the choir. The third verse is a meditative a cappella setting that eludes to the fleeting nature of our celebration here on earth while the final verse for unison choir with descant points to the banquet to be celebrated in heaven. This text is made even more poignant by the notation in the front of the anthem which reads: “On the day THIS IS THE HOUR OF BANQUET AND OF SONG was scheduled to go to press, word was received in this office of the death of the composer.” It seems his thoughts had already turned toward the heavenly banquet as he lost his battle with AIDS.

The postlude is a setting of Lowell Mason’s (1792-1872) hymn tune “Harwell” which is often coupled with the text from 1806 by Thomas Kelly (1769-1855), Hark! Ten Thousand Harps and Voices. Lowell Mason is considered the father of church music and music education in America. He spent his life studying and then educating teachers and musicians on the practice of teaching music and is also responsible for the introduction of music into the public school. This arrangement by the American organist Diane Bish (b. 1941). Bish has hosted, produced, and starred in the television series “The Joy of Music” for more than 25 years. This show takes her all over the world and features performances by world class performers on a variety of different organs. Known almost as well for her flashy costumes as for her flawless playing Bish remains a prominent recitalist throughout the US and Europe. This arrangement shows the wide variety of colors and sounds that are available to the organist and the different approaches that can be taken to text painting in a hymn arrangement.

The prelude is taken from Jean Langlais’s (1907-1991) Neuf Pieces written between 1942 and 1943. The piece was written as Langlais’s response to World War II. His publisher wanted him to write something that would include Gregorian chant and Lutheran chorale tunes. The seventh piece in the collection Prelude sur une Antienne incorporates the chant “vos amici mei estis” a text taken from John 15:14 “You are my friends, if you do the things that I command you.” This simple yet haunting melody in 5/4 is set smoothly and quietly. A bleak but quiet commentary on the world that Langlais lived in at the time of the composition.

The gradual anthem also comes out of the French Romantic tradition but is a “preview” of the Poulenc Gloria which we will present in full on Sunday, November 2. I will do a full set of program notes for that piece then.

October 5, 2014 - Proper 22

Sonata No. 6: "Andante" - Felix Mendelssohn

The Creation: "Achieved is the Glorious Work"

                                                                            - F.J. Haydn

Teach Me, O Lord - Thomas Attwood

The Creation: "Chaos" - F.J. Haydn

Hymns: #628 St. Ethelwald, #431 Aldine, 

              #598 Mit Freuden Zart

The gradual anthem and postlude are both taken from Franz Joseph Haydn’s (1732-1809) monumental oratorio The Creation. Written between 1796 and 1798 this was Haydn’s response to hearing performances of Handel’s oratorios during his visits to England between 1791 and 1795. The text for the oratorio is taken from Genesis, Psalms and John Milton’s Paradise Lost. Haydn was given a poem by Johann Peter Salomon but the actual author is unknown. Haydn turned the text over to Baron van Swieten who wrote both an English and German version of the libretto.  The work is in three acts with the first two depicting the six days of Creation and the third part takes place in the Garden of Eden with soloists singing the roles of Adam and Eve.

The postlude is the famous overture “Chaos” which depicts the universe prior to the six days of creation.  The piece creates a great deal of tension by delaying cadence points at phrase endings.  The gradual anthem,  “Achieved is the Glorious Work” is the final movement of part 2. The stately opening of this chorus is actually sung two movements before and followed by a trio for the three angel soloists. This iteration opens with the stately opening theme and then quickly moves into a large double fugue. The movement brings the first and second part to a close stating that the creation of the world is completed and that God alone reigns on high. During Arthur Poister’s time at Hendrick’s Chapel the choir would launch into this triumphal chorus anytime he played the opening Bb arpeggio.

The communion anthem was written by Thomas Attwood(1765-1838). Attwood received his early training as a chorister in the Chapel Royal and later traveled to Vienna to study with Mozart. In 1796 he was appointed organist of St. Paul’s Chapel and composer to the Chapel Royal. In 1823 he was appointed professor at the Royal Academy of Music. Among his student was John Goss, another English church composer. Attwood’s style and influence can be seen in the compositions of Goss. This simple setting of Psalm 119 is a prayerful request for God to teach us his ways that we will “keep them unto the end.”

The prelude is the final movement of the final sonata of Mendelssohn’s (1809-1847) Mendelssohn and Attwood were friends. Mendelssohn dedicated his three preludes and fugues to the London organist.  This meditative movement is a bit of a strange way to end a sonata but when you consider the genesis of these works it makes sense. These pieces were not conceived as sonatas by the composer but were grouped that way by Mendelssohn’s London publisher to make them more appealing to British audiences. 

September 28, 2014 - Proper 21

Missa Festiva - Flor Peeters

Dear Lord and Father - C.H.H. Parry

Hymns: #523 Abbot's Leigh, #686 Nettleton, 

              #477 Engelberg

Flor Peeters (1903-1986) was a significant figure in church music in the 20^th century. His compositional oeuvre was not limited to liturgical compositions but it was through the music of the church and for his own instrument, the organ, that he made his most important contributions. Peeters was educated at the Lemmens institute in Belgium and at the age of 20 became the youngest student to receive the Prix Lemmens-Tinel, the school’s highest honor. In 1923 he was appointed assistant organist and second organ teacher. Upon the death of Oscar Depuydt in 1925 Peeters took over for his former teacher as head teacher and first organist. Peeters taught at several prominent conservatories and institutes throughout Belgium as well as in Holland, something that became not only complicated but illegal during World War II. Peeters would use a false passport and trade his Belgian bicycle for a Dutch made model at the border so that he could continue teaching and act as a messenger between his Cardinal and the Dutch Bishop.  Peeters also offered late night organ recitals to Jews and other people of the resistance.

Seeing the drastic effects of the war, it is no wonder that this Missa Festiva is as haunting and at times as dark as it is. Written in 1947 this was a piece that fits perfectly within the confines set out by Pope Pius X in his letter on liturgical music from 1903. This piece is centered around Gregorian chant and utilizes the same musical material throughout making not a collection of standalone pieces but a through composed work based on the principles of classical tradition with the harmonic language of the time. The haunting opening theme of the Kyrie is very similar to the twisting line that the altos introduce in the Agnus Dei. The Gloria and Benedictus both open with ascending fifths and while the character of the two movements is quite disparate, the line of the latter feels almost familiar. It’s these harmonic and melodic similarities throughout the piece that tie this piece so tightly together.

Sir Charles Hubert Hastings Parry (1848-1918)is one of England’s foremost composers of the late 19^th/early 20^th century.  He is perhaps best known for his setting of the William Blake poem, Jerusalem, and his anthem I Was Glad. Parry’s tune, Repton was originally 'Long since in Egypt's plenteous land'  an aria for contralto from the oratorio Judith. The text is taken from John Greenleaf Whittier’s (1807-1892) poem the Brewing of Soma. This hymn-anthem setting arranged by H.A. Chambers opens and closes with the full choir but it is in the internal verses that the real creativity of the anthem occurs. The men sing the second verse in a strong unison until the tenors soar upward on the line “rise up.” The soprano’s verse leads us away from the key without making us actually leave it before returning to a half cadence that leads us back to the key we are already in! The piece ends as quietly as it began with the organ fading to the same chords that open the piece.

September 21, 2014 - Proper 20

Aria - Flor Peeters

Israel in Egypt: "Egypt Was Glad" - G.F. Handel

Missa Festiva: "Agnus Dei" - Flor Peeters

Fanfare - Jacques Nicolas Lemmens

This week’s music delves into the traditions of Belgian music in the 19^th and 20^th century. The music of Belgium greatly influenced the great French organ tradition. The teaching of Jacques Nicolas Lemmens (1823-1881) led to the great French tradition. He was the teacher at the Royal Brussels Conservatory and counted both Guilmant and Widor among his students. It was also Lemmens’ playing and concertizing that led to an interest in the organ works of J.S. Bach. His excellent technique led to an increase in the standards of organ playing and furthered the study of church music. His Fanfare is a light bouncy piece which relies on staccato manual playing. There are also definite similarities between this piece and the famous Widor Toccata from Symphony No. 5.

Flor Peeter’s (1903-1986) studied at the Lemmens Institute and in 1925 became the professor of organ at the institute. Peeter’s career as teacher, organist, and composer placed him in a very prominent position in the world of church music. He was nominated as an advisor to the Vatican II Council, wrote the largest collection of chorales of any composer, and contributed greatly to the music of the organ as an editor and composer. His Aria, Op. 51 is one of his most popular works for the organ. It is just that, a song with the theme played on a reed solo and accompanied by the foundation stops has interesting color chords against a beautiful but winding melody.  The communion anthem is also by Peeters but more on that next week when we present the whole Missa Festiva.

G.F. Handel is known to us today primarily for his oratorios, the most notable one being Messiah. It is commonly accepted that Handel turned to oratorio when opera was not an option. In May of 1738 the sale of season tickets was opened and by July the season had to be called off due to lack of subscriptions. Handel realized that he had to rethink his plans and began writing Saul and Israel in Egypt.

The work came together rather quickly and was composed from back to front. Handel first composed what we know today as Part 2, The Song of Moses. Musicologist Richard Streatfeild believes that this was initially to be a stand-alone anthem. He then composed Part 1, the Exodus in four days. In the original composition these served as parts 2 and 3 with part 1 being a reworking of a Funeral Anthem written for the death of Queen Caroline which became Lamentations of the Israelites for the Death of Joseph. The text for this work is taken directly from scripture, primarily the books of Exodus and Psalms. Some researchers believe the libretto to have been assembled by Charles Jennens who also assembled the text for Messiah. Egypt Was Glad closes the first large scene of the Exodus and depicts the reaction of the Egyptians to the Israelites leaving. 

September 14, 2014 - Picnic Service

The Love of God - F.H. Lehman

He's Just the Same Today - Elwood Denson

The Love of God - V.B. Ellis

Hymns: If You Believe, Old 100th, Go Down Moses

This week’s music is centered around Southern Singing Convention style Shape Note Music. This is what I grew up on.  I was first exposed to this by my oldest brother who somehow encountered the early Bill Gaither Homecoming videos and brought them home for my parents and I to watch. This was the first time that I really experienced people singing in harmony and doing counterpoint. As a more educated musician I can now see the more rudimentary nature of this counterpoint but it was the first time that I personally experienced parts moving in separate directions. The first time that I realized what a group of singers was truly capable of.

As a teenager I attended the Stamps Baxter School of Music. For three years I attended Ben Speer’s Music School in Nashville and learned about theory and harmony and sight singing and conducting taught by such gospel greats as the Speer Family. It was here that I learned the seven note shape note system where each note in the scale has a different shape. This was designed to help teach sight reading to people that had no experience singing at all and is a really interesting system of music education that expands upon the four note Sacred Harp system of the 19^th century.

The gospel hymn The Love of God by F. H. Lehman is an early example of convention style singing. This hymn describes God’s love from the perspective of god’s unfathomable love. The third verse which we will be performing as the benediction was not written by Lehman but was written on the wall of an asylum. It is a beautiful poetic explanation of the infinite nature of God’s love.

He’s Just the Same Today was written by Elwood Denson, a cousin of the Gospel pioneers, the Speer Family. This piece in the style of a fast gospel song tells the story of three Old Testament heroes, Moses, Daniel, and David. This song reminds us that the same God that did all of these miracles in the Bible is that same God that we worship today.

Vesphew Benton Ellis (1917-1988) a Church of God minister and member of the Southern Gospel Hall of Fame (2001) wrote a number of gospel songs. His setting of The Love of God has been recorded by a number of gospel groups including the Stamps Quartet. This piece gives the altos a chance to take the lead. In quartet style music the “soprano” line was sung by the lead of the quartet. The female singers (if there were any) sang the alto line otherwise this was sung the by the first tenor. This is considered the standard for “Quartet style singing.” As a student at Stamps Baxter I sang alto and got to sing all of the best parts. This piece offers a view that is very similar to the Lehman but musically shows one of the styles that was very typical of convention music, a slow six eight with an alto melody which was prevalent in a great deal of the more “sentimental” songs.

These pieces tie together in that they all show the love of God, either through explicit explanation or through the works of God in the Old Testament. These are a testimony to the love that God has for his people and fits well with the text for the day. A nice way to get back into the season, by focusing on the essence of our faith. 

June 8, 2014 - Pentecost

Ev'ry Time I Feel the Spirit - William L. Dawson
Give Me Jesus - Larry L. Fleming

Hymns:Sweet, Sweet Spirit, Veni Sancte Spiritu

The music that we are singing this week is inspired by the African American tradition. The spirituals Ev’ry Time I Feel the Spirit and Give Me Jesus deliver simple statements of faith that will (hopefully) serve to remind us why we sing and what overall should serve to put things into perspective for us.

Ev’ry Time I Feel the Spirit was arranged by the African American composer, conductor and professor William L. Dawson (1899-1990). Dawson ran away from home at age 13 to enroll in the Tuskegee Institute. From there he was accepted at the all-white college, Horner Institute of Fine Arts where he earned his B.M. but was not allowed to walk across the stage. After completing further study at the Chicago Musical College and American Conservatory he taught public school in Kansas City. Then, from 1931-1956 He taught at the Tuskegee Institute where developed the choral program. This piece is filled with energy and while it doesn’t deal with the day of Pentecost it does cover the influence of the Holy Spirit which God sent to us when Jesus ascended into heaven to comfort us. The song also deals with the double meaning of many spirituals. It’s hard to read the last verse and not find the references to the Underground Railroad in the “train that runs but one way” that we “can’t be late for.” This high energy spiritual seems a fitting choice for the end of the choir season.

The communion anthem is a plaintive arrangement of the spiritual Give Me Jesus. The arrangement by Larry L. Fleming (1936-2003) is filled with quiet subtle detail and a fitting final piece for the season. This year has been a year of changes, ambitious projects and great achievements. This piece is a reminder of why we do what we do. “You can have all this world, give me Jesus.”  The simple arrangement is incredibly expressive and never obscures the text.  I think that this is a good piece to refocus ourselves as we go on break and relax for the next couple of months to ponder the nature of our ministry as a choir and to remember why we do what we do.

June 1, 2014 - Easter 7

Sonata No. 3 in c minor: "Adagio" - Alexandre Guilmant
The Lone, Wild Bird - David N. Johnson
Elijah: "Cast Thy Burden Upon the Lord"
                                                               - Felix Mendelssohn
Bryn Calfaria - Ralph Vaughan Williams

Hymns: #450 Coronation, #307 Bryn Calfaria, #182 Truro

The music this past week didn’t quite turn out to be what I had planned but I was pleased with the flexibility and adjustments that we made. Originally the plan was for French and English music but rather than Poulenc and Handel we presented Johnson and Mendelssohn.

The choir presented David N. Johnson’s (1922-1987) classic anthem The Lone, Wild Bird. Johnson received his initial training at the Curtis Institute before enlisting in the army in 1942. Upon his return he studied at Trinity University and then here in Syracuse with famed professor, Arthur Poister. In 1967 he succeeded Poister as professor of organ at Syracuse University where he served for only two years before moving to Arizona to teach at Arizona State University at Tempe. Johnson was inspired to right this piece after seeing a solitary bird miles from shore on a trip from Los Angeles to Bombay. He adapted the Henry  Richard  McFadyen poem “The Lone, Wild Fowl” and set it to the Sacred Harp tune “Prospect.” This piece is accessible and adaptable for choirs at every level and is well crafted, making it a standard of the choral canon.

Cast Thy Burden upon the Lord is a quartet from the first part of Felix Mendelssohn’s (1809-1847) epic oratorio Elijah. The simple chorale serves as a reminder to Elijah that God will provide for him and look after him despite his feelings of loneliness and abandonment. The chorus is accompanied very simply with strings and a solo flute arpeggio. As with many of the choruses from this work it’s hard not to turn my mind to the notion that this oratorio was performed in concentration camps during WWII. This must have served as a powerful reminder to the people that had lost all hope that God would provide for them.

The organ music of Alexandre Guilmant (1837-1911) occupies a unique place in the canon of organ literature. His pieces range from simple but colorful versets and pieces from the “Practical Organist” which are virtually sight-readable to large complicated sonatas and programmatic pieces. The “Adagio” from his Sonata No. 3 in c minor is a simple piece that exploits the lush strings and celestes (stops that are tuned slightly sharp to creating a soft undulating effect) of the Cavaille-Coll organs. The piece utilizes gradual shading of dynamics while employing the terraced dynamics which are an innate part of the organ’s design. The piece jumps from one manual to the next in increasing volume before reducing the dynamics to finish with only the softest stops of the swell division.

The postlude is Ralph Vaughan Williams’(1872-1958) setting of Bryn Calfaria, a Welsh hymn tune by William Owen (1813-1893). This piece is reminiscent of the large “praeludia” of the North German School opening and closing with large free gestures. The middle section is a much stricter fugue which moves from the soft stops of the choir to the high pitched stops of the swell before moving to the great and closing with the same gestures which began the work. This setting captures the majestic grandeur of this great hymn.

May 25, 2014 - Easter 6

Fantasy on Down Ampney - Richard T. Gore
Messiah: "I Know That My Redeemer Liveth"-G.F. Handel
Double Fugue on "My Country tis of Thee"
                                                            - John Knowles Paine

Hymns: #405 Royal Oak, #705 Forest Green,
              #516 Down Ampney

The music this week is a combination of American music and a well-loved Handel aria. This weekend we are having Morning Prayer rather than celebrating the Eucharist which allows us to scale down the number of pieces for the week.

The prelude is a pair of variations taken from the Fantasy on Down Ampney, the closing hymn for today by Richard T. Gore (1908-1994). Gore was born in Tacoma Park, Maryland and studied in Berlin and at the Eastman School of Music as well as studying later with organist and composer Seth Bingham. He later became the organist at Cornell University and in 1945 was appointed to Wooster College, a position he occupied until 1974. The first variation is an ornamented setting of the hymn tune for manuals only while the second is labeled “new tune” and is played on a reed stop with string accompaniment.

The gradual anthem is taken from Part III of G.F. Handel’s (1685-1759) Messiah. I Know That My Reedemer Liveth opens the third and final part of Messiah, which is usually thought of as the ascension portion of the oratorio. Leonard Van Camp calls this aria a prologue to part three “Thanksgiving for the defeat of death.”The piece is depicted in the statue at Handel’s tomb in Westminster Abbey. The piece depicts the Messianic anticipation from the book of Job of which perhaps should be translated as “I know that my avenger liveth.” The remainder of the text is taken from Corinthians as are many of the texts in this section of the work. Handel’s use of text painting is evident in this aria with the ascending line on “For now is Christ risen.” The unison violins also seem to depict “the worms” destroying “this body.”

The postlude is American composer, John Knowles Paine’s (1839-1906) Double Fugue on “My Coutry Tis of Thee.” Paine, one of the “Boston 6” came to the organ honestly. His grandfather built the first pipe organ in the state of Maine. He was educated in Germany and toured Europe giving organ recitals. In 1861 he returned to Boston and became organist/choirmaster at Harvard University.  Paine also is credited as the father of the American symphonic tradition and wrote “St. Peter,” the first American oratorio. Paine’s fugue which includes an extended pedal passage which is a testament to Paine’s technique on the organ, he introduced a higher standard of virtuosic playing that had since been absent on this continent.

 

May 18, 2014 - Easter 5

Peace Be Unto You - George F. McKay
With a Voice of Singing -r Martin Shaw
Five Mystical Songs:"The Call"- Ralph Vaughan Williams
Christ is Made the Sure Foundation - David Cherwien

Hymns: #518 Westminster Abbey, #51 Decatur Place,
              #455 Dunedin

This week’s music is English church music through and through. The traditional Anglican hymn tunes that pervade the prelude, postlude and even the communion anthem are pillars of church hymnody. This music captures the joy and beauty of Eastertide as well as the grand soaring lines of the English choral tradition.

The prelude is a setting of the Henry Thomas Smart (1813-1879) hymn “Lancashire.”  Smart, an English composer and organist at many prominent English churches wrote this tune which is often combined with the text “Lead on, O King External.”  This setting of “Lancashire,” entitled “Peace Be Unto You,” is taken from George Frederick McKay’s (1899-1970) “Suite of Easter Hymns: Sayings of Jesus.” McKay was born in Harrington, Washington and later moved to Spokane. He was attracted to American folk music including jazz, blues, and Native American themes. McKay was the first graduate of composition from the Eastman School of Music in Rochester and was known for his support of young composers. These included his famous students John Cage and William Bolcom. This simple setting of Luke 24:36 is a simple melody and accompaniment setting of Smart’s tune played on a solo flute.

Martin Shaw (1875-1958) was born in London and made a career as a composer, conductor, and a theatre producer. The son of church music composer and organist, James Shaw and the brother of composer Geoffrey Shaw, it comes as no surprise that Martin Shaw went into music and theatre, his brother Julius was an actor. Shaw studied with Stanford at the Royal College of Music and founded the Purcell Operatic Society. Shaw toured Europe as a conductor for the dancer Isadora Duncan and Cofounded the League of Arts and the Royal School of Church Music. In addition to his work as a composer and conductor he served as the editor of “The English Carol Book” with Percy Dearmer and “Songs of Praise” and “The Oxford Book of Carols” with Ralph Vaughan Williams. With a Voice of Singing is perhaps Shaw’s best known piece, a long-time standard of the school and church canon, that is a triumphal statement of praise. The simple call, primarily unison writing and exact imitation in the fugatos makes this place accessible to choirs at every level but the solid melodic line make it appealing to choirs of all abilities.

Ralph Vaughan Williams’ (1872-1958) Five Mystical Songs were written between 1906 and 1911 and premiered at the Three Choirs Festival in Worcester in 1911 with the composer conducting. These pieces are settings of George Herbert’s (1593-1633) poems. Herbert was a Welsh-born poet, orator and Anglican priest. Herbert wrote in English, Greek and Latin and all of his English poems were collected in “The Temple: Sacred Poems and Private Ejaculations” in 1633. Vaughan Williams, an atheist, set this poem for baritone soloist and orchestra but the piece has since become a part of modern hymnody being included in The Hymnal 1982.

David Cherwien serves as the Director of Music at the Mt. Olive Lutheran Church in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He was educated at Elmhurst College and Augsburg College. In addition to his studies in the US he went to the Berlin Church Music School. His teachers included Paul Manz, Ernst Pepping, and Alice Parker. Westminster Abbey is named for the post that composer Henry Purcell (1659-1695) occupied. Purcell was appointed organist at Westminster Abbey in 1679 upon the retirement of his teacher, John Blow. Purcell died at the height of his career of unknown causes, possibly tuberculosis and is buried adjacent to the organ in Westminster Abbey. Cherwien’s setting alternates between the full organ and the secondary manual. One can almost hear the large Bombarde division of the Harrison and Harrison organ in the Abbey playing this majestic setting.